American nurse tests positive for Ebola

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The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. is urging the public not to panic now that they have the first case of Ebola contracted on American soil. The victim is a 26-year old nurse from Dallas.

The identity of the nurse has been confirmed as Nina Pham. The 26-year old was a caregiver for Ebola patient Thomas Duncan. Pham was diagnosed over the weekend after presenting low level symptoms. She is said to be in stable condition. Now health officials in Texas are looking into what procedures were or were not followed during that time.

Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, Director, Center for Disease Control and Prevention: “We have to rethink the way we address Ebola infection control.”

According to Frieden, the CDC is conducting an investigation to determine how a Texas nurse contracted Ebola.

Nina Pham was part of the team caring for Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan at Texas Presbyterian Hospital. But wore the mandated mask, gown, shield and gloves.

Health officials say there was a breach in protocol but have not provided any specific details.

One step being closely evaluated is the removal of personal protective gear.

Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, Director, Center for Disease Control and Prevention: “If it is contaminated, there is the possibility that a worker will contaminate themselves and become infected in that process.”

National Nurses United, the country’s largest nursing association, is calling for more training for health workers caring for Ebola patients.

Bonnie Castillo, Director, Registered Nurse Response Network, National Nurses United: “Not one more healthcare worker or one more nurse should be infected. In this country, we have the resources to contain and eradicate.”

Meantime, a cleanup crew that specializes in decontamination spent the day at Pham’s apartment, and the CDC is now monitoring dozens of other Dallas healthcare workers who came into contact with Duncan, worried that they may have had the same kind of breach which led to Pham’s infection.

There is concern over the dog that belongs to Nina Pham. This after officials euthanized the dog of an Ebola patient in Spain leading to protests by animal right activists in that country. In the U.S. they say that the dog will be cared for during this time but are giving no other explanation.

The World Health Organization says ‘fear of infection has spread around the world — much faster than the virus.’

So we did some number crunching to give you a little more insight. We’re taking a look at the three main countries dealing with the outbreak — Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. According to the CIA World Fact Book, the total population for all three countries is more than 21-million.

Numbers released from the World Health Organization last week say a little more than eight thousand people living in those countries have been infected with Ebola.

That’s less than one percent of the total population. And this is how fast the virus is spreading. As of last week — there are nearly three thousand new cases in the last 21 days. The spread of the virus is having a big impact on the economy, with the WHO’s director-general saying 90-per cent of economic costs of any outbreak “come from irrational and disorganized efforts of the public to avoid infection.” And the head of the International Monetary Fund is campaigning to “isolate Ebola — not countries.”

Christine Lagarde, Director of IMF: “Those countries have to continue the economic life and they have to continue to respond to their population’s needs. So that’s the reason whey the IMF put money on the table right away, in budgetary support – a hundred-and-thirty-million dollars, cash in the bank, within a few days. Now I’m worried about those countries, let’s face it. And even if the decease is contained rapidly, they will be facing economic decline and we will have to give them a hand and help them out.”

Marvin Ryder, DeGroote School of Business: We’re really seeing very little economic impact of Ebola in Canada. Just a tiny bit. Probably less than a billion dollars of economic activity in the United States that has been hurt by this. But where it is really hurting are these West African nations. These are very poor nations. They cannot afford anything to stumble their economies. Worsening their economies hurt by 100 billion dollars as people stay away. People are not buying goods. We’re seeing economic activity shut down. That why everyone hoping to get past this sooner rather than later. But I think the likely number by the time this is all done will hit a trillion dollars if we don’t see an end to the Ebola crisis.”

The outbreak is said to have paralyzed economic life in the three West African nations. Apart from flights being cancelled, hotels are vacant, shops are closed, and investments are on hold.